Dramatic late runs by Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors and Kyle Lowry of the Toronto Raptors headline the final results of NBA All-Star Balloting 2015 presented by Sprint. Curry (1,513,324 votes) edged the Cleveland Cavaliers’ LeBron James (1,470,483) to become the top overall vote-getter after trailing by 13,285 votes in the most recent balloting update. Curry, who started in last year’s NBA All-Star Game, is the first Warrior to be named a starter in back-to-back All-Star Games since Chris Mullin in 1991-92.

Lowry (805,290) rallied from a deficit of more than 100,000 votes at the last balloting update to overtake the Miami Heat’s Dwyane Wade and join the Washington Wizards’ John Wall (886,368) in the starting backcourt for the Eastern Conference. Wall, making his second straight All-Star appearance and first start, is the first Wizards starter since Gilbert Arenas in 2007. This is the first All-Star appearance for Lowry, who becomes the first Raptor to start since Chris Bosh in 2008. The East will have two first-time starters in the backcourt for the first time since Allen Iverson (Philadelphia) and Eddie Jones (Charlotte) in 2000.

The 64th NBA All-Star Game will tip off Sunday, Feb. 15, at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The game will be seen by fans in 215 countries and territories and will be heard in 47 languages. TNT will televise the All-Star Game for the 13th consecutive year, marking Turner Sports' 30th year of NBA All-Star coverage.

James, the top vote-getter last season, will start his 11th All-Star Game in 12 seasons. He was followed in the overall voting by the New Orleans Pelicans’ Anthony Davis (1,369,911), who finished with the most votes among frontcourt players in the Western Conference. At 21, Davis is the youngest starter in this year’s game, which features five first-time starters and 10 starters from 10 different teams.

James, who this month became the youngest player in NBA history to reach 24,000 points, is joined in the East frontcourt by the Chicago Bulls’ Pau Gasol (974,177), an All-Star for the fifth time, and the New York Knicks’ Carmelo Anthony (647,005), who earned his eighth All-Star nod. Anthony boasts the fourth-highest scoring average (21.1 points) in All-Star history and is the 10th player to earn four All-Star selections with two different teams (Denver, New York).

Gasol’s brother Marc of the Memphis Grizzlies was picked to start for the West, marking the first time in history two brothers will start an NBA All-Star Game. The Gasols are the first brothers to appear in the same All-Star Game since Tom and Dick Van Arsdale played in the 1970 and 1971 games.

Curry, who this month became the fastest player in NBA history to hit 1,000 career three-pointers (369 games), is joined in the West backcourt by the Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant (1,152,402), named an All-Star for the 17th time, second only to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (19). Bryant, who in December passed Michael Jordan for third place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list, is the all-time leading scorer in All-Star Game history with 280 points.

Davis and Marc Gasol (795,121) will share the West frontcourt with the Los Angeles Clippers’ Blake Griffin (700,615), an All-Star for the fifth consecutive season and the only player in the NBA averaging at least 23.0 points, 7.5 rebounds and 5.0 assists this season. It’s the second straight All-Star nod for Davis, who leads the NBA in blocks (2.95 bpg) and ranks among the top 10 in scoring (24.3 ppg), rebounding (10.4 rpg) and field goal percentage (56.3). This is the second selection for the Grizzlies’ Gasol, who is averaging a career-high 19.3 points, nearly five points above his previous best.

For the first time ever, the official NBA All-Star Ballot includes all current NBA players. Fans continue to select two guards and three frontcourt players.

Fan voting for All-Star game starters concluded on Monday, January 19. The starters were announced on Thursday, January 22.

The NBA’s 30 head coaches will select the reserves for the 2015 All-Star Game. They must vote for seven players within their conference: two guards, three frontcourt players and two players regardless of position. Coaches are not permitted to vote for players on their own team. Reserves will be announced on Thursday, Jan. 29, on TNT. If a player is unable to participate in the All-Star Game after the coaches choose the reserves, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver will select the replacement.

The East and West All-Star coaches and coaching staffs are determined by the best record in the conference through games played on Sunday, Feb. 1. By virtue of their teams’ victories on Wednesday, the Atlanta Hawks’ Mike Budenholzer and his staff will coach the East and Golden State’s Steve Kerr and his staff will lead the West. The Indiana Pacers’ Frank Vogel and the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Scott Brooks were not eligible because they coached in the 2014 NBA All-Star Game.

Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors will start in his first NBA All-Star Game, having secured the top spot among Western Conference backcourt players after the final returns of NBA All-Star Balloting 2014. Curry (1,047,281) is joined in the West backcourt by the L.A. Lakers’ Kobe Bryant (988,884), who was selected to play in his 16th All-Star Game, second all-time behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (19). LeBron James of the Miami Heat was the leading overall vote-getter with 1,416,419 votes, followed closely by Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder, who finished with 1,396,294 votes.

The 63rd NBA All-Star Game will be exclusively televised on TNT from New Orleans Arena on Sunday, Feb. 16, 2014. The All-Star Game, also broadcast live on ESPN Radio, will collectively reach fans in 215 countries and territories in more than 40 languages.

James, an All-Star for the 10th time in 11 seasons, is joined in East’s frontcourt by the Indiana Pacers’ Paul George (1,211,318) and the New York Knicks’ Carmelo Anthony (935,702). The Heat’s Dwyane Wade (929,542) and the Cleveland Cavaliers’ Kyrie Irving (860,221) comprise the Eastern Conference’s starting backcourt. Wade is also making his 10th trip to the All-Star Game in 11 seasons.

Durant, who earned his fifth All-Star nod, is joined in the frontcourt in the West by the L.A. Clippers’ Blake Griffin (688,466) and the Minnesota Timberwolves’ Kevin Love (661,246), who overtook the Houston Rockets’ Dwight Howard for the final starting frontcourt spot in the West. It’s the fourth straight All-Star nod for Griffin, while Love is set to play in his third All-Star Game.

NBA All-Star Balloting 2014, which concluded on Jan. 20, gave fans around the world the opportunity to vote daily for their favorite players as starters for the 2014 NBA All-Star Game.

In selecting reserves for the 2014 NBA All-Star Game, the 30 NBA head coaches must vote for seven players within their conference, including two guards, three frontcourt players and two players regardless of position. Coaches are not permitted to vote for players on their own team. After the coaches select the reserves, if a player is unable to participate in the All-Star Game, the NBA Commissioner will select the replacement. Reserves will be announced on Thursday, Jan. 30, on TNT.

The East and West All-Star coaches and coaching staffs are determined by the best record in the conference through games played Feb. 2. Indiana’s Frank Vogel was already named coach in the East on Jan.14, by virtue of the team’s record. The Heat’s Erik Spoelstra and the Spurs’ Gregg Popovich are not eligible, having coached in the 2013 NBA All-Star Game.

The Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant (1,591,437) edged the Miami Heat’s LeBron James (1,583,646) as this year’s leading vote-getter in the 2013 NBA All-Star voting, earning his record 15th consecutive All-Star nod. Bryant breaks a tie with Jerry West, Karl Malone, and Shaquille O’Neal for the most consecutive NBA All-Star selections. A four-time NBA All-Star MVP (2002, 2007, 2009, and 2011), Bryant holds the distinction as the youngest All-Star in NBA history (1998). In last year’s All-Star Game in Orlando, he passed Michael Jordan as the game’s all-time scoring leader.

The 62nd NBA All-Star Game will be played at the Toyota Center in Houston on Sunday, Feb. 17, 2013 (8 p.m. ET), televised exclusively on TNT and broadcast exclusively on ESPN Radio in the U.S. The All-Star Game will reach fans in more than 200 countries and territories in more than 40 languages.

Bryant’s partner at the guard position in the Western Conference starting lineup is the Los Angeles Clippers’ Chris Paul (929,155). The West’s starting frontcourt features the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Kevin Durant (1,504,047), the reigning NBA All-Star MVP, the Lakers’ Dwight Howard (922,070), and the Clippers’ Blake Griffin (863,832).

Joining James, a two-time NBA All-Star MVP (2006, 2008), in the Eastern Conference frontcourt are the New York Knicks’ Carmelo Anthony (1,460,950) and the Boston Celtics’ Kevin Garnett (553,222), the 2003 NBA All-Star MVP. The East guards are the Heat’s Dwyane Wade (1,052,310), the 2010 NBA All-Star MVP, and the Celtics’ Rajon Rondo (924,180), who earns his first All-Star Game start. Garnett’s selection, his 15th, ties him with Bryant and O’Neal for the second-most All-Star Game nods in league annals. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was elected to 19 games.

The 2013 NBA All-Star voting, which concluded Jan. 14, gave fans around the world the opportunity to vote daily for their favorite players as starters for the 2013 NBA All-Star Game in Houston. For the first time, NBA fans were able to vote via social media networks, including Facebook and Twitter, and Sina Weibo and Tencent QQ in China.

In selecting the reserves, the 30 NBA head coaches must vote for seven players within their conference, including two guards, three frontcourt players and two players regardless of position. Coaches are not permitted to vote for players on their team. After the coaches select the reserves, if a player is unable to participate in the All-Star Game, NBA Commissioner David Stern will select a replacement. Reserves will be announced Jan. 24, on TNT.

The East and West All-Star coaches and coaching staffs will be determined by the best record in the conference through games played Feb. 3. Thunder coach Scott Brooks and the Chicago Bulls’ Tom Thibodeau, by virtue of having served as head coaches in the 2012 All-Star Game in Orlando, are not eligible to coach in this year’s game.

NBA All-Star 2013 in Houston will bring together some of the most talented and passionate players in the league’s history for a global celebration of the game. The 62nd NBA All-Star Game, which will take place on Sunday, Feb. 17 at Toyota Center, will reach fans in more than 200 countries and territories in more than 40 languages. TNT will televise the All-Star Game for an 11th consecutive year, marking Turner Sports' 29th year of All-Star coverage. All-Star Saturday Night will feature the Shooting Stars competition, the Skills Challenge, the Three-Point Shootout, and the Slam Dunk contest. Other events at NBA All-Star 2013 will include the Rising Stars Challenge, NBA Development League All-Star Game, and the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game.

Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant, a
three-time All-Star MVP, is this year’s leading vote-getter in the NBA
All-Star Balloting program with 2,380,016 votes. It
is Bryant’s 13th consecutive All-Star selection; only Jerry West, Karl
Malone and Shaquille O’Neal, with 14 straight nods each, have more. Orlando
Magic center Dwight Howard, the second leading vote-getter overall with
2,099,204, paced the Eastern Conference.

Bryant, the youngest All-Star in NBA history in 1998, and the All-Star MVP
in 2002 and 2007, and co-MVP along with Shaquille O’Neal in 2009, is joined
in the Western Conference starting backcourt by the New Orleans Hornets’
Chris Paul (1,281,591). The Oklahoma City Thunder’s Kevin Durant
(1,736,728), making his first All-Star Game start, and the Denver Nuggets’
Carmelo Anthony (1,299,849) are the starting forwards. The Houston Rockets’
Yao Ming gets the nod at center (1,146,426). NBA Commissioner David Stern
will select a replacement for Yao, who is injured with a stress fracture in
his left ankle.

Joining Howard in the Eastern Conference starting lineup at forward are the
Miami Heat’s LeBron James (2,053,011), the 2006 and 2008 All-Star Game MVP,
and the New York Knicks’ Amar’e Stoudemire (1,674,995). The starters for
the East at guard are the Heat’s Dwyane Wade (2,048,175), last year’s
All-Star Game MVP, and the Chicago Bulls’ Derrick Rose (1,914,996), who
earns his first All-Star Game start. James and Wade are the first set of
teammates to start an All-Star Game for the Eastern Conference since Wade
and Shaquille O’Neal represented the Heat in 2007 in Las Vegas.

If the voting ended today, the starters would be: Wade, Iverson, LeBron, Garnett and Dwight Howard in the East, and Kobe, McGrady, Melo, Dirk and Amar'e in the West.

Let's start with the West. Kobe, Melo and Amar'e are good picks and sure things to make it. Dirk is also a good pick, and he has a decent but not massive lead over Tim Duncan, who is also worthy of starting. All good there. The problem remains McGrady having 746,625 votes, slightly ahead of Steve Nash's 744,250 and Chris Paul's 701,417. I'm really hoping Nash suddenly gets a big boost of support. And I'm sure I don't need to say this, but obviously I'm a fan of McGrady's like everyone else, but he clearly has no business getting votes like this right now. The logical assumption is that T-Mac continues to get votes from overseas fans who love Yao Ming and tend to support the best players around him.

In the East, Wade, LeBron, Garnett and Dwight have big leads they should all hold onto. Those are four worthy starters. Chris Bosh had been close to Garnett in past voting but KG has pulled away. I'm OK with that, though Bosh is having a great season, so he at least deserves a head-nod. But the issue in the is Allen Iverson (14.0 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 4.5 apg as of January 7) getting all these votes. He's played in just 13 games. And his stats on the 76ers aren't much better than they were in the three games he played for the Grizzlies.

Clearly, Iverson is getting the nostalgia vote. The guy is a legend. Former MVP. Trend-setter. Not a big fan of practice time. A scorer who didn't tend to make teammates better. But a former superstar who captivated fans. And earlier in the season it was looking like his career was over, before the 76ers reached out to bring him back to where it all started.

So, while I don't support Iverson getting to start, I'm not that mad about it. Because the other East guards really aren't so hot. Behind Iverson in the voting is Vince Carter, who is certainly having a much better season than Iverson but also doesn't really deserve to actually start in the big game either. I'd be more annoyed if Iverson was taking a spot away from a guy who absolutely, clearly deserved it, like votes for McGrady are doing to Nash or Paul.

Anyway, no matter what, it's going to be a fun game. If McGrady gets in, he probably won't play much, and even if he does he's apparently healthy now. And he's still Tracy friggin McGrady, a baller. And if Iverson gets in, which now appears likely, he too is more than capable of contributing to the game.

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FOURTH RETURNS FOR 2008-09 NBA ALL STAR VOTING RESULTS

Orlando’s Dwight Howard, the defending Slam Dunk champion, is still Superman at the ballot box with 2,102,368 votes following the fourth returns of 2009 NBA All-Star Balloting. Cleveland’s LeBron James (1,940,162) is tugging at his cape in the Eastern Conference, while Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers and Yao Ming of the Houston Rockets are dueling it out for the top spot in the West.

Phoenix will host the NBA All-Star Game for the third time when the midseason classic is played for the 58th time on Sunday, Feb. 15. The game will air live (8pm ET) on TNT, ESPN Radio and in more than 200 countries and territories worldwide. The NBA All-Star Game was played in Phoenix in both 1975 and 1995.

James, the NBA All-Star Game MVP in 2006 and 2008, is followed at the forward position in the East by Boston’s Kevin Garnett (1,375,814), the leading vote-recipient in 2008. Miami’s Dwyane Wade, the NBA’s leading scorer, leads all Eastern Conference guards with 1,818,717 votes, followed by Detroit’s Allen Iverson (1,278,600). Philadelphia’s Samuel Dalembert (257,527) is running second to Howard at the center position.

Bryant tops the Western Conference with 1,903,798 votes, followed by Yao (1,758,499). The Houston Rockets’ Tracy McGrady follows Bryant at the guard position with 1,216,224 votes. San Antonio’s Tim Duncan (1,454,918) and Denver’s Carmelo Anthony (905,121) pace all Western Conference forwards, with Shaquille O’Neal (1,006,383) of the Phoenix Suns trailing Yao at the center position.

The 2009 NBA All-Star Balloting program allows fans around the world to vote daily for their favorite players as starters for the All-Star Game in a variety of ways, including: at each NBA arena; in 20 languages on NBA.com.

Voting will continue through Jan. 11, for paper balloting and Jan. 19, for NBA.com and wireless balloting.

NBA All-Star 2009 is a week-long celebration that enables fans to experience the thrill of the world’s greatest athletes playing the game they love and features a full slate of community-enhancing activities including the NBA Cares All-Star Day of Service and fan festivals such as NBA All-Star Jam Session.

One hundred twenty players – 60 each from the Eastern and Western conferences – are listed on the NBA All-Star ballot. Voters select two guards, two forwards and one center from each conference. The 120 players on the ballot were selected by a panel of media experts who regularly cover the NBA.

This is the final balloting update. The announcement of the All-Star starters will take place on Thursday Jan. 22, prior to a TNT doubleheader. Following the completion of fan voting and the starting lineup announcement, the head coaches in each conference will vote to determine the remaining All-Stars in their respective conference, which will be announced Thursday, Jan. 29 prior to a TNT doubleheader.

Boston Celtics forward Kevin Garnett led all players in votes received in the NBA All-Star Balloting program that determines starters for the 2008 NBA All-Star Game. Garnett, who will be appearing in his 11th All-Star Game and was the MVP of the 2003 All-Star Game, received 2,399,148 votes, the sixth highest total in NBA All-Star Balloting history. Among active players, Garnett’s 11th All-Star selection ranks second to Miami Heat center Shaquille O’Neal (14).

Garnett edged last year’s top vote-getter and 2006 All-Star MVP LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers, who came in second overall with 2,108,831 votes. James will make his fourth career All-Star appearance, while Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard finished with the third most votes overall (2,066,991) and will make his first career start in his second career All-Star appearance.

Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant led the Western Conference, finishing with 2,004,940 votes. Bryant, who was the youngest All-Star in NBA history in 1998, will make his 10th All-Star trip. The reigning All-Star MVP, Bryant edged Denver Nuggets forward Carmelo Anthony as the top vote-getter in the West. Anthony will make his first career All-Star start after finishing with 1,723,701 votes.

Through the 2008 NBA All-Star Balloting program, fans worldwide were responsible for voting in the starters for the 57th NBA All-Star Game, which will be played in New Orleans on Sunday, Feb. 17. The game will air live on TNT, ESPN Radio and in more than 200 countries and territories worldwide. Head coaches in each conference will vote to determine the remaining All-Stars in their respective conference, which will be announced Thursday, Jan. 31, on TNT.

Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade (1,608,260), who will make his third consecutive All-Star start, and New Jersey Nets guard Jason Kidd (1,246,386), who was voted to his ninth appearance as an All-Star, join Garnett, James and Howard in the Eastern Conference starting lineup.

Joining Bryant and Anthony as part of the Western Conference starting lineup are the Houston Rockets’ Yao Ming at center (1,709,180), who was voted as a starter for the sixth straight year; the San Antonio Spurs’ Tim Duncan (1,712,800), who has been selected to every All-Star team since he entered the league in 1997, will start at forward; and Anthony’s teammate, two-time All-Star MVP (2001, 2004) Allen Iverson (1,203,152), who will make his ninth consecutive All-Star appearance starting at guard.

In selecting the reserves, the head coaches must vote for seven players within their conference, including two guards, two forwards, a center and two players regardless of position. Coaches are not permitted to vote for players on their team. After the coaches select the reserves, if a player is unable to participate in the All-Star Game, NBA Commissioner David Stern will select a replacement.

Boston Head Coach Doc Rivers and the Celtics coaching staff earned the honor to coach the Eastern Conference All-Stars by clinching the best winning percentage in the conference through games of Feb. 3. The Western Conference Coach is yet to be determined. Last year’s All-Star coaches – Phoenix’s Mike D’Antoni and Washington’s Eddie Jordan – are not eligible to coach this year.

The 2008 NBA All-Star uniforms were also unveiled today and were inspired by the uniqueness of New Orleans, the look and feel of the French Quarter, and the rod iron architecture that is unique to the city. The back of the jerseys are silver for the West and gold for the East to represent the conference colors.

FINAL RESULTS -- Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James led all players in votes received in the NBA All-Star Balloting program that determines starters for the 2007 NBA All-Star Game. James, who earned Most Valuable Player honors in last year’s midseason classic in Houston, received 2,516,049 votes, the second-highest total in history behind Yao Ming’s 2005 total of 2,558,278. This year, Yao finished second receiving 2,451,718 votes, the fourth-highest total ever.

The closest voting race in this year’s balloting was among Eastern Conference guards. Miami’s Dwyane Wade secured one starting spot with 2,029,591 votes and Washington’s Gilbert Arenas (1,454,166) edged New Jersey’s Vince Carter (1,451,156) by 3,010 votes in the closest race in 17 years since A.C. Green/Karl Malone (1,226 votes) and John Stockton/Derek Harper (2,562 votes), both in 1990.

Miami center Shaquille O’Neal (1,622,446) was selected to his 14th straight All-Star team, tying Lakers legend Jerry West (14; 1961-1974) and Utah great Karl Malone (14; 1988-2002) for the most consecutive selections. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar holds the record for most All-Star Game selections with 19.

Through the 2007 NBA All-Star Balloting program, which saw a 17 percent increase in votes cast over last year, fans worldwide were responsible for voting in the starters for the 56th NBA All-Star Game, which will be played in Las Vegas on Sunday, Feb. 18 at 8 p.m. ET. The game will air live on TNT, ESPN Radio and in more than 200 countries and territories. Head coaches in each conference will vote to determine the remaining All-Stars in their respective conference, which will be announced Thursday, Feb. 1, on TNT.

Joining Yao as part of the Western Conference starting lineup is his Rockets’ teammate Tracy McGrady (1,942,796), who will be appearing in his seventh All-Star Game. San Antonio’s Tim Duncan (1,436,584), who has been selected to every All-Star team since he entered the league in 1997, and Minnesota’s Kevin Garnett (1,616,575), who captured All-Star MVP honors in 2003, will be the starting forwards. L.A. Lakers guard Kobe Bryant (2,138,777), who was the youngest All-Star in NBA history in 1998, makes his ninth All-Star trip.

James will be joined in the Eastern Conference frontcourt by O’Neal and Toronto’s Chris Bosh (1,091,263), who will be making his first career All-Star start. Arenas also will make his first career All-Star start while Wade makes his second consecutive start and third straight appearance.

In selecting the reserves, the head coaches must vote for seven players, including two guards, two forwards, a center and two players regardless of position. Coaches are not permitted to vote for players on their team. After the coaches select the reserves, if a player is unable to participate in the All-Star Game, NBA Commissioner David Stern will select a replacement.

Phoenix head coach Mike D’Antoni and the Suns coaching staff earned the honor to coach the West as a result of their 112-107 win over New York last night combined with San Antonio’s 90-85 loss to Houston. The Suns (34-8, .800) have clinched the best winning percentage through games of Feb. 4 among eligible Western Conference teams for the All-Star coaching honors. The Eastern Conference Coach is yet to be determined. Last year’s All-Star coaches – Dallas’ Avery Johnson and Detroit’s Flip Saunders – are not eligible this year.

Through the Balloting program, which ran from Nov. 13, 2006 through Jan. 21, fans had the opportunity to vote at all NBA arenas, on the league's official website, and through other methods.

The leaders of both the Eastern and Western Conference players for the final returns of the 2007 NBA All-Star voting program are as follows:

* The Philadelphia – Denver trade involving Allen Iverson was completed after the media panel’s deadline for selecting the ballot and therefore Iverson is listed on the ballot as a member of his prior team. For tabulation purposes, Iverson’s votes will be counted towards the Western Conference totals.TOP 10 ALL-TIME SINGLE SEASON LEADING NBA ALL-STAR VOTE-GETTERS

Official final results of fan voting for the 2005 NBA All-Star game starters. Fan voting began on November 18, 2004 and it ended on January 23, 2005. The final results and official starters for the All-Star game were announced on February 3. Then, NBA coaches will vote for the bench players. This season's NBA All-Star game is in Denver on February 20. InsideHoops.com provides full coverage of NBA All-Star weekend.

OFFICAL STARTERS FOR 2005 NBA ALL-STAR GAME

EAST:
Allen Iverson
LeBron James
Vince Carter
Grant Hill
Shaq O'Neal

WEST:
Kobe Bryant
Tracy McGrady
Kevin Garnett
Tim Duncan
Yao Ming

Yao Ming of the Houston Rockets and Shaquille O’Neal of the Miami Heat both eclipsed the all-time single season record for votes received in the NBA All Star Balloting program that determines starters for the 2005 NBA All Star Game. Yao received the most votes (2,558,278) in NBA history while O’Neal collected the second-highest total with 2,488,089 votes as each earned the starting center spot in their respective conference.

Through the 2005 All-Star Balloting program, NBA fans from around the globe were responsible for voting in the starters for the 54th NBA All-Star Game, which will be played in Denver on Sunday, February 20 at Pepsi Center. More than six million ballots were cast, a 14 percent increase from last year’s totals.

The game will be broadcast live on TNT, Rogers Sportsnet, ESPN Radio and audio in several languages on NBA.com (http://nba.com) at 8 p.m. (EST).

Yao is joined in the Western Conference starting lineup by Minnesota’s Kevin Garnett (2,087,200) and San Antonio’s Tim Duncan (1,812,522) at forward and Rockets teammate Tracy McGrady (1,993,687) and Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant (1,815,952) at guard.

O’Neal is joined in the Eastern Conference starting lineup by New Jersey’s Vince Carter (1,803,529) and Orlando’s Grant Hill (1,497,489) at forward and by Cleveland’s LeBron James (1,661,204) and Philadelphia’s Allen Iverson (1,590,400) at guard.

O’Neal has been selected to his twelfth NBA All-Star Game; Garnett to his eighth; Bryant, Duncan and Hill to their seventh; Carter and Iverson to their sixth; McGrady to his fifth; Yao his third; and James will be making his first appearance.

The 30 head coaches will vote for the remaining members of the All-Star teams in their respective conferences, and their selections will be announced on Tuesday, February 8. Coaches must vote for seven players in order of preference but are not allowed to vote for players from their team. The selections must include two guards, two forwards and a center. Two other players are chosen regardless of position. Also, if any player cannot participate in the All-Star Game, NBA Commissioner David Stern will select a replacement after the coaches select reserves.

Stan Van Gundy of the Miami Heat will coach the Eastern Conference All-Stars and at this time the coach for the Western Conference All-Stars has not been determined. Head coaches for the East and West All-Star teams are based on teams with the best winning percentage in each conference following the Sunday games (February 6) played two weeks prior to the All-Star Game with San Antonio’s (37-10, .787) Gregg Popovich and Phoenix’s Mike D’Antoni (37-11, .771) the leading candidates.

For the third consecutive year, NBA All-Stars will wear uniforms created just for the game. This year’s All-Stars will be outfitted in new uniforms from Reebok which were inspired by the Denver Nuggets uniform design. The West will wear white jerseys and the East will wear blue while the shorts will feature a star encapsulated NBA logo on each side, a conference logo on the waistband and a “05DN” wordmark on the center back which represents 2005 Denver.

Through the 2005 NBA All-Star Balloting program, which ran from November 18, 2004 through January 23, 2005, fans had the opportunity to vote in more ways than ever. The balloting program expanded to include 19 languages on the NBA.com Network, downloadable ballots via Verizon Wireless and approximately 150 Loews Cineplex Entertainment movie theaters in the United States. This year, Twentieth Century Fox joined Sprite, America Online, Reebok and approximately 2,100 Foot Locker and Champs Sports stores in the United States and Canada as All-Star balloting partners. Ballots were also distributed in all 29 NBA arenas and all six NBDL arenas.

NBA All-Star 2005 is a week-long celebration that enables fans to experience the thrill of the world’s greatest athletes playing the game they love and features a full slate of community enhancing activities and fan festivals.